


When Anakin Goes Crazy

by MightyWolves23



Series: The Curious Case of the Tooka [2]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Anakin stole the show with his angst, And a cry for help, Caring Anakin Skywalker, Confused Anakin Skywalker, Fix-It of Sorts, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Gen, I tried to write fluff but..., Kaminoans Being Assholes (Star Wars), Pets, The 501st has a pet, Well the beginning of a fix it, brief mentions of mind control
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-22
Updated: 2021-02-22
Packaged: 2021-03-12 12:22:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,477
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29634603
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MightyWolves23/pseuds/MightyWolves23
Summary: Anakin knew he wasn't going crazy. Something or someone was barking at three in the flipping morning every night. It needed to stop. Whoever was pulling this prank was not funny.Anakin never would have guessed just what was barking so late at night. He met the culprit and things became clearer.
Relationships: 501st Legion & Anakin Skywalker, Anakin Skywalker & Ahsoka Tano, Brief Padme/Anakin - Relationship, CT-7567 | Rex & Anakin Skywalker
Series: The Curious Case of the Tooka [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2176617
Comments: 4
Kudos: 94
Collections: Guerra_das_Estrelas





	When Anakin Goes Crazy

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Silver_Snek](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Silver_Snek/gifts).



> So... I blame Alex for this. Some parts they had a hand in. This is for you.

Anakin wasn’t crazy. He wasn’t. No matter what everyone said. He could hear barking at night. He would be trying to sleep and the noise would startup. When he went to investigate everything was quiet. 

Padme was worried. She called him stressed and tried to get him to relax. 

Anakin knew he wasn’t stressed… okay. That was a lie. With the war going on everyone was stressed. But he wasn’t imagining things, was he? 

Anakin knew something was up, but what was it?

****

Anakin was trying to sleep. He knew it would start at any moment. Sure enough, barking was heard through the vents of the Resolute. Anakin groaned and shoved his head in his thin pillow. 

“Shut up whatever you are!” Anakin yelled towards the vents. 

The barking soon stopped and Anakin was left with blessed quiet. For three minutes before the barking started up again. 

“Argg!” Anakin groaned in frustration. “If that is you Ahsoka it isn’t funny! People are trying to sleep!” 

The barking stopped and Anakin swore that he would reprimand his padawan tomorrow. Snips was not funny. 

***

Anakin woke up the next day, ready to give his padawan a thorough scolding. 

He met her in the mess. “Ahsoka. A word.” He called her away from where she was sitting with Rex and his top men. Jesse, Kix, Hardcase, Echo, Tup, and Fives. 

“Yes, Master?” Ahsoka came over to him curiously. 

“Look, Snips. I get that you are young and pranks are fun but barking at three in the morning is not okay. People need sleep and keeping them up for a prank is not nice or acceptable.” Anakin was frustrated when Ahsoka kept looking over at Rex’s table. 

The men were laughing. 

“Snips!” Anakin nearly yelled. 

Ahsoka jumped and faced him. “It wasn’t me, Master. I was in bed.” 

Anakin felt her truth through the Force. “Then who was it?” Anakin eyed his snickering men. “It’s a trooper. Isn’t it?” Anakin was angry but his knowledge of how others treated his men tempered it. “Tell whoever it is to stop. I need my rest.” 

Anakin stalked off leaving his Padawan to tell whoever it was to stop pulling pranks at three in the morning. 

****

The barking stopped for a few nights but then started back up on the fourth night of blissful silence. Anakin flung his pillow over his ears. He didn’t want to get any of his men in trouble but if they didn’t stop Anakin was going to make them. 

He flung open his door. No one was outside it. No one was even near his door in the halls. Ahsoka was in her room, sleeping, and how she could sleep through that racket was beyond him. 

Rex was missing from his room, Anakin could feel that much. His Captain’s steady but chaotic presence was gone from the room next to his. 

Rex’s presence always reminded him of a sandstorm. Steady in its beating of sand against everything but chaotic in the way that he could go from zero to sixty miles an hour that fast. 

That was missing. If Anakin concentrated then he could barely sense Rex in a hallway far from his. Closer to the barracks but Anakin knew vents were near there too. 

Anakin scowled. His Captain seemed to be pulling pranks. It was somewhat childish, but if Rex wanted to pull a prank, then Anakin was going to talk to him. Tomorrow. Because the barking was stopped and Anakin was tired. 

Anakin fell asleep with the thought of ‘talking’ to his Captain burning in his mind. 

***

Anakin didn’t get a moment alone until afternoon the next day. They had a morning sparring session between the men that Anakin enjoyed greatly. It was always satisfying to see his men get along and see their fighting skills. 

Rex was absent during the spars until he came back brushing off his armor. Anakin noted new scratches in his paintwork. 

Rex quickly won each match he entered before the last sparing session was here. Rex vs. Jesse. They quickly sprung into hand-to-hand combat. The troopers cheered and passed credits into various palms. 

“Don’t take it easy on him Captain! I’ve got ten credits riding on you kicking his shebs!” Hardcase’s voice was easy to hear over the crowd. 

“Come on Jesse! You can win! The Captain is getting up there in years! You can surely beat him!” A voice called. 

The troopers laughed when Rex raised an eyebrow. He barely broke a sweat as he dodged a kick from Jesse. 

“I’ll remember that Fives when it comes to you asking me for something,” Rex called back as he did a twisting kicking move that knocked Jesse flat on his back. 

The other trooper just laid there panting. 

Anakin guessed the wind was knocked out of him. 

Half the men cheered while the other half groaned and shook their heads. 

“Where’d you learn that Captain?” Echo came up to Jesse and Rex. 

“Cody.” Rex gave a little smirk. 

“Should have known it. Those 212th…” Hardcase grits out some words in Mando’a. 

The troopers around them laugh. 

“Those Mesh’la loving shabuire.” Jesse agrees. 

Anakin frowned. Were his men not getting along with the 212th? Was this going to be a problem? 

“I think the 212th is okay,” Anakin spoke up. “I don’t know why you have a problem with them.” 

Suddenly every trooper went silent. 

“General.” Rex stepped up. “I didn’t know you were here.” 

Anakin shrugged. “I like seeing you guys spar. It’s fun to watch.” 

Anakin didn’t know what he said wrong because some of the men flinched. 

“Hey,” Rex spoke words Anakin couldn’t understand. His tone was soothing and the men relaxed. “Was there something you needed General?” Rex didn’t look happy with him. 

“Uh… Not right now. But if you could see me after lunch, Captain?” Anakin left the room when all Rex did was nod. He felt unwelcome like he was intruding on something special. It didn’t escape his notice that some of the men didn’t fight. 

He wondered what was up with that.

***

  
Rex found him after lunch. He was wearing his helmet and standing outside his office door. 

“Come in Rex. Have a seat.” Anakin waved at the extra chair in his office. 

Rex sat stiffly on the chair. He didn’t remove his helmet. “Yes, General?” 

“At ease.” Anakin reminded gently. 

Rex didn’t relax a fraction of an inch. 

Anakin frowned. “You aren’t in trouble Captain, I just want the barking to stop.” 

“The… barking, sir?” Rex shifted on his seat in a display of nerves. 

“Yes. Every morning at three there’s this barking through the vents. I don’t know what it is, but it needs to stop.” Anakin was getting worked up. “I know pranks are funny put keeping people up when they need rest is not okay.” 

Rex was unmoving. “The… the 104th made a bet with us, Sir. I’ll get whoever’s responsible to stop, Sir. You have my word.” 

Rex’s voice sounded weird. Like he was trying to hide something. Anakin narrowed his eyes. 

“Am I clear to speak freely, Sir?” Rex cleared his throat and through the vocoder in his helmet, it sounded like static. 

“You are.” Anakin wondered what bet that Plo’s men made with his. 

“Why do you like to watch us fight? It makes some of the newer ones… nervous.” Rex’s helmet tipped at him in question. 

“I like seeing the camaraderie between you guys. You guys are brothers and it really shows when you guys spar. All the jokes and playful taunts… I… I guess I want something like it.” Anakin watched as Rex relaxed. 

“Thank you for the clarification, Sir.” Rex stood up. “And… I think if you look around, you will see you have a brother already waiting.” Rex left without another word. 

Anakin was confused. What did Rex mean? A brother already waiting? He didn’t have that. Obi-wan didn’t like him and always held him back and Ahsoka wasn’t a brother. He didn’t have any other friends at the temple. They all hated him. 

A thought niggled at his mind. That was what the Chancellor always said. Why did that sound off? 

It got brushed to the back of his mind as Anakin went about his day. 

****

Anakin noticed other things besides the barking. 

His men acted shifty at times and would go somewhere on the ship and come back with new scratches in their armor or dents. 

His men also seemed more relaxed after, too. Like whatever dented their armor was something they enjoyed greatly. 

Anakin decided to follow his men down to where they went. 

He hid in the Force with the ‘don’t look at me. I’m not here’ suggestion that Obi-wan sort of taught him. He followed Rex around the ship and through the halls to the barracks. Anakin was in the vents. 

“How is he?” Rex came to a stop by a trooper. Anakin couldn’t see who it is because he could only see their legs. 

“Playful as always, Sir. I think Tup and Fives took him for a walk.” The trooper paused. “Sir? Why does the General like to watch us fight? He’s… he’s not like them, is he?” 

“No. General Skywalker is not like them. He likes watching us because of how close we are. He doesn’t see that General Kenobi would be with him like that in a heartbeat.” Rex’s voice drifted away. “Let’s go rescue Tup and Fives.” 

“Sir, yes, sir.” The trooper followed Rex down the hall.

Anakin sat there in shock. Was Rex right? Would Obi-wan be his brother like the men were brothers? 

Anakin moved too late. By the time he got over his shock, Rex was long gone. 

*****

Anakin was waiting. He was by the barracks meditating in a vent. Or at least trying to. He needed to think about a few things and why not try while trying to catch a prankster. 

If what Rex says is true then Obi-wan really doesn’t hate him. Why does he think that he does then? Why does he think everyone hates him and no one understands him? 

According to Rex, Obi-wan loves him like a brother. That was what he desperately wanted. Was it too good to be true? Was Rex giving him false hope? 

Something twisted in his mind going, ‘Yes. The clone captain is wrong. No one loves you. False hope indeed.’ 

Anakin could almost separate that from himself and what he felt frightened him. Something or someone was in his mind. 

A snuffling at the vent caused Anakin to freeze. 

A reptilian snout was whining and pushing at the vent bars. 

“What’s wrong, boy?” A trooper called. “What have you found?” 

The trooper popped up the vent cover and suddenly Anakin had a lapful of wiggling, face-licking massif from Tatooine. 

Anakin yelped and toppled backward. The massif curled up on his chest, whined, and licked Anakin’s chin. 

“Who’s in there?” The trooper called. “Shabuir, come here.” 

A hand reached in and grabbed the creature by the collar and pulled him off Anakin. 

Anakin stared as the dog whimpered. 

“Grab my hand.” A hand was thrust into the vent hole. 

Anakin gripped the trooper’s hand and was pulled from the vent. A startled gasp reached his ears and the trooper shoved the dog behind him. 

“Sir.” The trooper snapped to attention. 

“Um… What is that?” Anakin pointed to the massif as the dog strained to reach him. 

“Shabuir, sit.” The trooper commanded the massif. 

The dog sank down on his haunches. His tongue lolled out of his mouth. His eyes were trained on Anakin. 

“What’s going on? Is this the barking I keep hearing?” Anakin stared at the massif and completely missed his trooper shaking in nerves. 

“Yes, Sir. I’m sorry, Sir. We tried to get him to stop but for some reason, he kept wanting to head your way. Sir?” 

Anakin hummed. He couldn’t take his eyes off the dog that reminded him so much of his home planet. 

“Are… are you going to make us get rid of him? He’s really helpful and doesn’t make that much of a mess. He calms down the younger ones and when we have nightmares he’s always there for us. Please, if we keep him, I promise he won’t bark so late at night anymore and.. If you have to punish us for having him then I accept full responsibility and..” 

That caught Anakin’s attention. That thing in his head snarled and talked about lies and punishment. Anakin forced it back and boxed it up until he could have someone help him with it. 

“I’m not going to punish anyone.” Anakin looked up and met the trooper’s eyes. He smiled at the shaky trooper. “I think having a dog would be great and if it helps you men then…” Anakin shrugged. “I read somewhere that dogs are good for therapy and helping with trauma. I think that’s what… Shabuir?” Anakin raised an eyebrow at the name. 

The trooper blushed. “It ah… means Bastard.” The trooper ducked his head. “The older ones named him that.” 

Anakin nodded his head with a smile. “Let me guess… Fives?” 

“And Echo, Sir.” The trooper lifted his head. Hope shone in his eyes. “You really are not mad and will let us keep him?” 

“Sure.” 

Anakin patted his leg. Shabuir looked up at the trooper who nodded at the dog. The massif lunged forward and jumped up on Anakin. Licking everything in sight. Anakin met the gaze of the dog and somehow, Shabuir knew something was wrong with him. 

“I’ll… I’ll get help soon,” Anakin whispered in his first language. The Huttese rolled off his tongue for the first time in a while. His native tongue that he and this massif shared. 

Shabuir barked and bounced around Anakin. 

“Shabuir. Heel.” The trooper led the dog back down the hall. “Thank you, General. I will let the others know.” 

“What’s your name trooper?” Anakin called back. 

The trooper paused. “Light, sir.”

Anakin smiled. “It’s nice to meet you Light. Tell the men I am one hundred percent okay with Shabuir.” The unusual name was difficult to pronounce and he was certain it was Mando’a. The trooper’s language. 

Light laughed. “I think you need some lessons in our language, Sir.” 

“I look forward to it.” Anakin went back to his room, smiling. 

He now knew why there was barking going on on his ship at three in the morning. Hopefully with him knowing, that they can take him for walks when it was the day cycle, otherwise he was going to have a talk with them. 

Anakin paused. “That little…” Anakin was sure Ahsoka was in on this. It all made sense. Ahsoka must have known about the dog from the get-go. 

Snips was going to have some payback. Skywalker style. 


End file.
